Moreno Valley Mall officials, unable to get teenagers to behave, have banned anyone 17 or younger after 7 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays unless accompanied by a parent or guardian.

The exceptions are the Harkins movie theater and Round 1 Bowling. A parent or guardian must escort minors to purchase tickets at those businesses but doesn’t have to stay.

“Things we were trying to do in the past weren’t working,” marketing manager Tracie Plefka said in an interview.

Customers will be required to show proof of age to mall security. The mall plans to increase its security and there is also a Riverside County sheriff’s deputy on site.

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The most recent incident, one that prompted further discussion, was a brawl among teens in the food court on April 20. Some were detained by deputies, and the food court was shut down the rest of the day.

The number of minors at the mall has risen on weekend evenings, leading to an increase in disruption to its businesses and customers, a written statement said.

“While we want our youth to have safe places to shop, eat and socialize, we want that for our adult customers as well and felt it necessary to enforce some quieter time,” Dee Oransal, the mall’s general manager, said in the statement. “The mall has tried to enforce a code of conduct policy, but that has not been successful. Mall management understands the frustration of those that adhere to the policy, but those that do, has not outweighed those that don’t.”

Regarding entrance to Harkins Theatre and Round 1 Bowling after 7:00pm on Friday and Saturday. A parent or guardian will have to escort kids 17 and under to purchase tickets for a movie or activities at Round 1. We will be increasing security presence as well as a MVPD Deputy. pic.twitter.com/nnpveSQ4nT

Brian Rokos writes about public safety issues such as policing, criminal justice, scams, how law affects public safety, firefighting tactics and wildland fire danger. He has also covered the cities of San Bernardino, Corona, Norco, Lake Elsinore, Perris, Canyon Lake and Hemet. Before that he supervised reporters and worked as a copy editor. For some reason, he enjoys movies where the Earth is threatened with extinction.